Carley Corrado's Fundraiser:

Empower Women Economically

THE STORY:

I have recently become passionate about women's issues globally when I met an amazing person Emilee, a birth doula beaming with information that blew my mind. In addition to the immense challenges that she explained, her message was equally inspiring, explaining how a little bit of money can go a long way. One person can make a difference, be it you or me, or the woman that your donation helps. Either to send one girl to school, who then raises the standard of living in her whole village ( true story, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFgPtuzgw4o ) or to repair one woman with a fistula surgery that literally turned her from disabled to completely fixed. A couple hundred dollars can change someone's life. And when you invest in a woman, her impact on her family and community is massive. So for my 30th birthday, I ask you to please donate to this cause, which will go directly to microcredit loans to empower women: http://www.foundationforwomen.org/

Microcredit loans are intended for those who cannot qualify for loans from traditional financial institutions. The loan terms are designed to help those who only need a small amount of capital to buy for example a cow, a sewing machine, or a refridgerator. An investment in such a tool to start a business is enough to change someone’s life. Read Adisue’s story below and how she rose from single-motherhood poverty to now having her own business and all four of her children in school.

Putting money in the hands of women can have a positive long-term effect on the whole family, but women still suffer more from poverty than men.For every dollar a woman earns, she invests 80 cents in her family. Men, on the other hand, invest around 30 cents and are more likely to squander money on alcohol and other vices. But if greater income equality was achieved across gender lines, this could help decrease poverty through the generations. Studies have indicated that when women hold assets or gain income, the money is more likely to be spent on nutrition, medicine and housing, and consequently their children are healthier and in school.

One person can make a difference -- you or me. And helping one woman, she can make a difference.And it feels so good! We can make a difference in our community locally AND globally. Lets help make the world a better place!

Empower Women Economically

Women comprise 70 percent of the world’s poorest people and own only 1 percent of the titled land, according to a U.N. report. They suffer not only from unequal access to education and training, but also from discrimination by their employers. The majority of women earn on average about three-fourths of the pay that men receive for doing the same work, outside of the agricultural sector, in both developed and developing countries.

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan argues that:

"There is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women. No other policy is as likely to raise economic productivity, or to reduce infant and maternal mortality. No other policy is as sure to improve nutrition and promote health -- including the prevention of HIV/AIDS. No other policy is as powerful in increasing the chances of education for the next generation. And I would also venture that no policy is more important in preventing conflict, or in achieving reconciliation after a conflict has ended."

The return on a country's investment in its women is enormous. Investment in girls' education, especially secondary education, yields high returns in the form of increased wages. Greater access to credit and other financial services increases women's mobility and increases household consumption. Women in employment also enjoy greater status in their family and community, contributing to their overall empowerment.

This video from the Girl Effect(http://www.girleffect.org/)looks at the changes to society that can be brought about when we focus on girls' the message is --invest in a girl and she will do the rest.

A little goes a long way..Meet Adisue Ayu.

She lives 30 miles outside of Addis Ababa, measured in distance—and a century away measured in way of life. Adisue is 30 years old, divorced, and raising four children on her own. The only material possessions her husband left her were a simple thatched roof hut they had built and four sheep. With no formal education, Adisue could survive only with ingenuity and immensely hard labor. Fortunately she has both in spades.

Adisue took her first loan of $150 six years ago to purchase a cow. She turned its milk into butter and cheese to sell in the local market. What has been the result? The impact of that one cow on Adisue’s life has been staggering. She now owns five cows, has built a larger house and replaced the leaky thatched roof with tin. All four of her children are now in school, no small feat for a struggling family. Today Adisue has a monthly income of 500-600 Brr—equivalent to the starting salary for a college graduate in Addis. Her aspiration? To keep getting larger loans so that she can build a cow shed and double her dairy business.

Tatiana Marie

DONATION: $25

O'Brien's

DONATION: $20

Fundraise online and raise money for charity and causes you’re passionate about. CrowdRise is an innovative, cost-effective online fundraising website for personal fundraising pages, non-profit fundraising and event fundraising. Raise money online for causes and have the most fun in the world while doing it.